January 04, 2024

Born in 2005, Killed At The Front


Born in 2005, Killed At The Front
Russian soldiers with military equipment.
Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation, Wikimedia Commons.

On December 31, the BBC reported it had obtained the name of an 18-year-old Russian contract soldier who was killed in Ukraine. It was the first known casualty of a soldier born in 2005, the youngest so far.

Stas Silchenkov was born on May 20, 2005. In 2023, he graduated from Smolensk school Nº24. Silchenkov entered the Smolensk Regional Technological Academy but didn't finish. On September 5, the 18-year-old signed a contract. On November 17, he was killed.

According to Irina Silchenkova, the mother of the soldier, she was informed of the death of her son in Sinkovka, Kharkiv Region, nearly a month after he was killed. On December 16, Silchenkova "said goodbye to my son Stas," burying him in the village of Nizhnyaya Gedeonovka.

In April 2023, the State Duma passed a law that allowed 18-year-old students to enlist in the army as soon as they finished school. The bill was passed unanimously except for one abstention.

Mediazona, together with the BBC and a team of volunteers, maintains a list of Russian soldiers killed in Ukraine.

You Might Also Like

Notes at the Front
  • August 15, 2023

Notes at the Front

More poignant and brave “last words” of dissenters, and a look at one popular place (again) of exile.
Student Sentenced for Spying
  • January 03, 2024

Student Sentenced for Spying

For the first time, Russia has sentenced a student for spying. The 18-year-old was a high-achieving student.
My Fair Snow Maiden
  • January 04, 2024

My Fair Snow Maiden

A school's New Years party causes a stir when a male teacher dresses up as Snow Maiden.
A Very Famous Terrorist
  • December 25, 2023

A Very Famous Terrorist

Popular writer Boris Akunin has been added to the Kremlin's list of terrorists and extremists.
Integration through Education?
  • October 08, 2023

Integration through Education?

Russian President Putin stressed the importance of education in regions newly annexed from Ukraine. But is there a more sinister motive at play?
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

Murder at the Dacha
July 01, 2013

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.

A Taste of Russia
November 01, 2012

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices
May 01, 2013

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.

The Latchkey Murders
July 01, 2015

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...

Marooned in Moscow
May 01, 2011

Marooned in Moscow

This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.

The Moscow Eccentric
December 01, 2016

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955